Chinese Astrology Rabbit Statue in Kowloon, Hong Kong

What is Your Sign?

I can’t say I fully understand the intricacies of Chinese Astrology. I think I know two things:

  1. It seems to have little in common with Western Astrology.
  2. I am the Rabbit.

When I visited Kowloon’s Sik Sik Yuen Wong Tai Sin Temple the place was packed…I walked in shoulder to shoulder with other tourists and worshipers. There wasn’t a clear shot of much so I focused on close-up work. You know…creativity is an attribute of both the Rabbit AND Pisces!

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Spiral Incense in Hong Kong

Which Buddhist Temple?

I have visited quite a number of temples, shrines, churches and other holy places around the globe. This is amazing as I get to see how people from different places and walks of life experience religion. The problem is sometimes these sites can run together! Some places like La Sagrada Familia are unmistakable, but this shot…might be a few places! I think, given the prominent spiral incense, its Man Mo Temple, but honestly I am only about 75% sure!

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Buddhist Wall in China

Haunting Sculptures

There are so many great artistic works created in the name of religion. I don’t know the significance of this sculpture, but it is almost as maddening a work as La Sagrada Familia‘s Nativity Facade. There are so many carvings within carvings and around carvings it’s hard to know what is happening.

I took a HUGE bit of creative license as the room was dimly lit in places. There colors are all mine, but the madness is all Buddhist artists!

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Bricks of Chinese Pu-erh Tea

So MUCH TEA!

I am surprised Pamela didn’t collapse when we entered Tea City. We have been so many amazing places in the world, and I don’t quite recall anywhere bringing her to such a hushed awe. This shelf was completely full of pu-erh tea bricks. I am sure Pamela would have loved to ship the whole stall home!

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Yuyuan Garden Walkway Design Detail

What’s Underfoot

You cant miss this river stone walkway. The moment you step foot on it, you notice the irregularity…its more natural feel. You notice the uneven-ness of nature, but you also know it is anything but natural. This fits perfectly with the way I feel about Chinese gardens in general. It always seems to me the Chinese are looking for some harmony and connection with nature (in their gardens), but it’s always seems a more “perfected” nature, taking the good, discarding the bad…molding to find a perfect form. This is neither good nor bad, and only my interpretation which is course is always changed itself.

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Shelves of a Tea Seller in Shanghai

For the Love of Tea

It is no secret that my wife LOVES tea. So much is her passion, that when I said I would fly here anywhere in the world she wanted to go for her 40th birthday, the answer came without delay. China. I was so happy to take her to her first (I am sure of many) visits to Hangzhou and Shanghai, China, but more specifically Tianshan…Tea City. Tianshan is in Western Shanghai. An endless maze of wholesale tea vendors and shops where your tea dreams can come true. Below is just one shelf of random teas, but the supply was as endless as the offers of more samples. Come prepared to be completely overwhelmed.

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Chinese Window Art

Chinese Details

Another Chinese garden design element. This window at YuYuan Garden in Shanghai is another example of those great natural forms that Chinese artists bend to their will.

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Chinese Dog Carving at Lingyin Temple

My Love of Random Sculptures

A quick photo today from my favorite part of Hangzhou…Lingyin temple. It’s probably an obvious photo for me to take at this point, but I just love the little details around Chinese gardens, monasteries and the like. The craftsmanship at the Lingyin area is exquisite and this little dog is no exception.

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Lingyin Temple Buddha Carving, Hangzhou, China

Unknown Purpose

It is said the monk who built Lingyin temple came to the mountain and knew he must build a monastery there. The guide said nobody was sure why, but I know. In all the chaos of people, the noise, the wild energies without purpose, you can feel it there…You can feel the peace of the soul of the world. It is different than Sedona, but I know why so many Native tribes were called to that place as well. The soul of the world is present, all around, IN all things, IS all things. I believe there are places in the world where the vail is thinner, peace is deep in the Earth at Lingyin. One only needs to open up and begin to FEEL, to know that monks calling.

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/4
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 1 July, 2015
  • Focal length: 31mm
  • ISO: 1600
  • Shutter speed: 1/250s
  • Title: Lingyin Temple Buddha Carving, Hangzhou, China

Shapes in Yuyuan Garden, Shanghai, China

Two Worlds

Chinese gardens are dizzying places full of zigzag paths, raised stairs, many, many buildings…it all leads to confusion. Their path madness is said to bewilder evil spirits who must travel in a straight line. I must have a lot in common with these evil spirits. Most of the time I am confused if I have visited a particular area of Yuyuan Garden. I have been there several times and each I have forced myself to surrender to the chaos and just let myself be…to flow though the place.

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/5.6
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 2 July, 2015
  • Focal length: 20mm
  • ISO: 640
  • Shutter speed: 1/320s
  • Title: Shapes in Yuyuan Garden, Shanghai, China.psd